. Dominic or St. Francis,
who have no income or property in this country, as the Augustinians
have, or in the lands and property of the Indian villages; the former
know the Indian language, and have no need of interpreters--and it is
these last who often defeat justice. It would be a great thing if your
Majesty could entrust to some of these fathers the affair of these
Indians against the fathers of the Society. They tell me even that
one of the Jesuit fathers, who went from here as their procurator,
is about to claim on their behalf, the donation of the benefice and
doctrina of the said village of Quiapo. The name of this procurator
is Father Chirinos. They do not make this claim for the sake of the
mission or benefice, for it is a very small hamlet; but only because,
if they hold the said village as a mission, the Indians will not dare
to make any claim against them, or to speak. For the love of God,
your Majesty should right this, for the affair itself demands an
effective remedy; and at least we, as ecclesiastics and religious,
should not scandalize or oppress the poor Indians, or take their
property from them. The worst of the matter is that the fathers of
the Society maintain with infidel Chinese the lands of these Indians,
on which there is only a Sodom. I believe that this infection has
been communicated, to some extent at least, to the houses of the
Indians; for their proximity, and the teaching that the Indians are
receiving, are quite evident. But I have already written at length to
your Majesty of this in my other letter, and all that I have written
there is little in comparison with the gravity of the matter.

A proceeding that may cause much annoyance is, that the governors
assign houses and hospitals to some of the religious without
consulting and asking the opinion of the ordinary, and agreeing with
the latter in the matter. For the governors, either to find someone to
confess them and overlook these things, or to write to your Majesty
and your councils in their favor, or not write to their prejudice,
wish to satisfy the religious, and at times in a very unreasonable
manner. Your Majesty is already informed of what Don Francisco Tello
did here, giving the Augustinian fathers the chapel [25] of Nuestra
[Senora] de Guia, where a secular priest was teaching, and some place
or other at the port of Cavite, which came near resulting in great
troubles. For the love of God, your Majesty should not leave our
pea